TALLAHASSEE — Of all the questions the Athletic Coast Conference hopes to answer this week at its annual spring meetings in Amelia Island, the most pressing may revolve around Florida State.

Are the Seminoles leaving the conference, or not?

Thanks to a rather frenzied Saturday that included telling comments from the school's board of trustees chair and football coach about a potential move from the ACC to the Big 12, the contingent of FSU administrators heading to the meetings will have to answer that question and many like it.

As of late Saturday night, the university's official position was the same as it has been since the school joined the conference more than 20 years ago. That stance remains the same entering Monday's meetings.

"Florida State is not seeking an alternative to the ACC nor are we considering alternatives," school president Eric Barron said in a statement released at 11:01 p.m. Saturday. "Our current commitments remain strong."

That statement echoed the sentiments of athletics director Randy Spetman who told the Orlando Sentinel last Friday that FSU was "committed to the ACC."

Such commitments took a bit of a hit Saturday afternoon, however, when Warchant.com, a website that covers FSU athletics and recruiting, published an exclusive interview with trustee board chair Andy Haggard. According to the website, Haggard blasted the ACC for its recently extended $3.6 billion television deal with ESPN and felt it was time for his school to at least listen to any overtures made by the Big 12.

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel on Saturday night, FSU football coach Jimbo Fisher hinted that he agreed with Haggard's thoughts about listening to the Big 12.

"There have been no officials talks, but I think you always have to look out there to see what's best for Florida State," Fisher said. "If that (jumping to the Big 12) is what's best for Florida State, then that's what we need to do."

To the point about his displeasure with the ACC television deal, Haggard said the following to Warchant:

"It's mind-boggling and shocking," Haggard said. "How can the ACC give up third-tier rights for football, but keep them for basketball?"

At the center of the controversy about the now $17 million set to be paid to the ACC's member schools as part of the new conference distribution pact has been a misperception about "Tier 3" rights. Haggard, like many who are part of the raging conference realignment conversation online, thought the ACC had only allowed its member schools to sell those individual rights for men's basketball, but not football.

By supposedly not affording football the same broadcast opportunities as basketball, Haggard felt the ACC was showing that its motivations for football—FSU's greatest revenue producing sport—weren't as strong.

Late Saturday, the Orlando Sentinel spoke to an ACC official who said Haggard's claim about the controversial "Tier 3" rights was false. Both "Tier 3" rights for football and men's basketball were sold to ESPN when the last deal was struck in 2010.

They have been "unchanged since 2010," the official said.

Haggard has since backed off of those comments which forced Barron to address them in part of his Saturday night statement.

"Florida State University regrets that misinformation about the provisions of the ACC contract has unnecessarily renewed the controversy and speculation about the university's athletic conference alignment," Barron said.